Past Insanity
Note: this is an alternate ending Supercool story by Ananasz, for real. ---------------------------------------------- This alteration of the original story plays off in the 1800s, England. All characters, with exception of Dennim, are British. Mind is an 18 year old aristocrat living in a mansion, together with her servants and parents. For months, the staff in the house has been decreasing and new applicants rarely show up. Out of desperation, the head of the staff accepts a "disturbingly hideous" teenager and assigns him to do most of the dirty work. Dennim, the new employee, is seemingly content with the bad treatment he receives from the other servants caused by his unusual appearance, and spends his days obediently doing his chores, and occasionally staring at the family's fair daughter travelling the corridors. She doesn't pay heed to the mere housekeeper, but is aware of his existence and his duration of stay, opposed to her parents, who don't keep track of their staff and have managed to look past him every time. This fact will prove him useful eventually; and after Dennim has stayed in the mansion for merely two weeks, he gets confronted with a horrifying scandal that was previously hidden from him. While polishing the staircase in the entrance hall, he spots Mind's father following his daughter upstairs. Dennim becomes suspicious of this seemingly normal encounter when he notices her expression change upon seeing the man follow her, before disappearing out of Dennim's sight. When the two family members have officially left the room, Dennim decides to follow them. When he approaches her bedroom, he hears a man's voice uttering disgusting whispers at the other side of the door and Dennim immediately barges in. He sees Mind's father having his daughter pinned down on the bed, thus Dennim forcefully yanks him off of her, right into a piece of furniture. Mind's father, offended by the attack, wastes no time to threaten him with death by hanging, but Dennim fires back a bold response that he deserves the hanging for molesting his daughter. Mind's father growls that "it's not the business of a lowly servant" and adds that even the dumbest servants in the house know better than to intervene. Because Dennim appears visibly unfamiliar with that piece of information, Mind decides to jump in for him and explains to her father he didn't know and is still new. She tries to further spare his life from the livid man by lying that she appointed him to be her bodyguard, and she desperately needs his assistance. When Mind's father asks for the details of her desperation, she explains that men have attempted to get more physical with her during her visits to the village, and that she hired Dennim to protect her from possible sexual assaults. Mind's father becomes alarmed after having learned this supposed knowledge and silently considers Dennim for a few seconds. He concludes to himself that he's too ugly for Mind to ever "cheat on him with", and after having experienced Dennim's strength first-hand, considers it safe to allow him to keep his job and life for his daughter's sake. He gives Dennim a second chance and lets him be her bodyguard, leaving Mind quite surprised over her success . After it becomes clear that Dennim isn't sure what is proper to do after everything has been said, Mind says he should leave the room and not come to see her for a while. His face shows disbelief for her request, but he obeys and leaves her with her assaulter. Dennim decides to wait in the staff room downstairs and reports Mind's abuse to the servants present, but they all confirm to know about the improper relationship. He picks up on their strange choice of words and is quick to understand that most of them think it's consensual. The servants add that he shouldn't get involved, as Mind's father's influence can put anyone to death without needing much of a reason. The incest, as for the punishments by death, are known facts within the country, explaining how commoners are uneager to work for the family and the amount of already hired staff members kept decreasing. But despite the scandal, the family's overall rich status earns them a free pass for their crimes in the eyes of other aristocrats. Dennim feels angry over people's reluctance to help Mind, but the others explain that those who oppose Mind's father in any way are put to death. When Dennim notices Mind's father occupying the hallways again, he heads back upstairs to Mind's room. He finds her still stripped of her clothes and barely conscious on the bed. Still, she has the strength to notice someone coming in and starts crying in embarrassment when she sees the servant's eyes directed at her. While she keeps urging him to leave her be, Dennim continues his journey to her private bathroom and fills the bathtub for her. He then returns to the main room to pick up his raving mistress, and puts her in the water. When she's been taken care of, he decides to change her sheets and places a clean pink dress for her on the bed. Mind is spectating his efforts from the tub, and feels defeated by his stubbornness. When he returns to check on her, she tries to regain her composure and asks him one last time not to come see her next time. Dennim argues that she should receive help when she needs it the most, and speaks ill about the other servants for not doing the same. She answers that they keep their distance because she asked them to, but Dennim feels nothing for that reason. He helps drying her off and guides her back to the bed. She silently thanks him for the help, with a small hint of frustration in her voice, but says she can do further without. Dennim figures he's upset the naked woman enough and goes back downstairs to do his regular chores. After a short while, he sees Mind descending the stairs again, wearing the dress he picked out for her. Mind decides to give him a short-lived smile, but her face makes it clear she doesn't want to acknowledge him ever again. Dennim answers to her emotions and moves himself out of her sight. While he's directed his attention to cleaning the other side of the stairs, Mind's father enters the room and notices his daughter. He becomes charmed by her fresh appearance and choice of clothes, and feels drawn to her again. While Dennim can't see the two characters, he's able to hear Mind uttering small sounds of desperation, whereafter he peeks around the corner to see what's going on. He sees that her father snuck up on her and tries to guide her back upstairs with him, thus Dennim uses the time they need to get upstairs by sneaking outside and pretending to be the head of staff. He alters his voice and starts calling for Mind to come outside. Dennim quickly summons a horse carriage and the family's coachman, and keeps shouting in order to pressure her father to cancel his plans. Mind's father starts shouting back at him, but Dennim tries to add to the urgency by informing him Mind needs to leave right now to get her mother more ingredients for her currently suspended baking. Mind's father waits a moment and then lets Mind go. Mind hastes herself outside where she sees the carriage waiting and Dennim holding the door open for her. She asks where the head of staff went off to, to which he gives a short answer and just urges her to get moving. Mind gladly obeys and they ride off. Mind and Dennim don't speak to each other during the trip. As she tries her best to avoid eyecontact with him, he decides to respect her unreadiness to socialize and merely graces her with a penetrating stare. Soon after, they arrive right outside of the village and Dennim silently guides his mistress out of the carriage. But the coachman becomes worried by the small amount of people leaving his vehicle, and asks if it's a good idea to have Mind mingle with peasants when there's so little protection available. Dennim answers he's all she needs, but the man is not convinced until Mind confirms this and appears visibly calm about heading into the village with her sole bodyguard. She offers the man a warm smile, preventing him from uttering more objections, and calls for Dennim as she heads towards the village. He patters after her like a content pet and slows down speed again when positioned next to her. After a few seconds of familiar silence, he decides to thank her for her blind trust in his capabilities. She answers to have greater worries in life than the possibility of being mugged or kidnapped by a farmer, and is just happy to be away from home. The odd Dennim takes her reply as a funny joke, and while initially confused by his response, Mind also decides to consider it as such, and clumsily shares a smile with him. But after having taken a few steps, Mind's arched back and pained face makes it apparent her abuse from earlier has not left her without consequences, despite her silence about it, and Dennim takes it upon himself to hire a wooden chariot for her. Her wounded body forces her to accept the unusual form of transportation and she is paraded around while looking for the items her mother supposedly needs. The villagers spectate the rich man's daughter and her arrogant choice of transportation. Their faces turn faul, but they're even less entertained by the red-eyed Dennim playing her slavish horse, and a few men take the opportunity to approach the poorly protected Mind with their complaints concerning her act and her family. She doesn't know how to respond to the sudden threat and just asks them to leave her be, but they are insulted by her "demand" and become even more hostile. Dennim urges them to fuck off, but is then dragged into their roasting; and it's suggested Mind's family made a deal with Satan and have been granted the assistance of his little Hell goons. Mind becomes upset by their persistence to insult her and asks Dennim to take her back to the horse carriage. The men then intend to push Mind down and mug her, but when Dennim jumps in and pushes back, other villagers start to join in. Dennim helps the startled Mind off the cart and moves her closer to him, and gleefully fights the angry flocks of peasants that sprint towards them. While he gets caught up the outdoors bar fight, one of them manages to approach from the side and pushes Mind over. Her noteworthy shriek of pain upon landing catches Dennim's immediate attention, and his anger turns his playful shoving into comatosing punches. The men fall to the ground after their bones sound an unhealthy crunch, and become completely motionless and unresponsive. The remaining villagers presume they've been killed and become uneager to continue their attack. Dennim uses the moment to check on Mind and she tells him she might not be able to stand anymore. Dennim abandons the chariot and casually carries her away from the stares still pointed at them. When they arrive at the horse carriage, he places her inside and instructs the coachman to take the tourist route back home. Mind asks if it wouldn't be better if they headed home right away, but Dennim reminds her that her father is waiting for her. When the carriage starts moving, Dennim asks how she's doing. She responds that something might've ripped inside her body and doesn't know what is best to do right now. Dennim then claims to know a few healing tricks and asks if he can touch her, but she doesn't feel comfortable with his request and tells him this. He lets her know it's nothing inappropriate, but while still skeptical about his abilities, she lets him come close with his supposed appropriate help. Dennim sits next to her and guides his hand under her dress, initially shocking Mind, but he manages to allow it to move over to her underbelly. He gently rubs the skin and keeps this going for a few seconds, until Mind is baffled to find the pain is leaving her body. She praises his healing skills and wants to know more about its origin, but Dennim gives an unverifiable answer and claims it's a Buddhist technique. Mind becomes intrigued enough to keep the conversation going and asks why he didn't become a practising doctor over being a servant, but he mentions people's dislike for anything that'll remind him of witchcraft. This takes them to the subject of the world's perception of them, giving them more food for thought, and after Mind expresses her sadness over the lack of friends and love in her life, Dennim reveals to have joined her staff because of her. He claims to have known her since she was 3 years old, but Mind doesn't understand how he can know her and can't recall having ever met him. He explains he was born in the village and his first memory is of her strolling through the streets with her family. Because Dennim had no caretakers and was spawned into existence inside one of the empty homes, he mostly kept himself hidden from his neighbours and he spend alot of time watching the girl he was drawn to, but knew little about. His stories about having followed her to her home for 15 years isn't convincing Mind that this qualifies as a charming story, and she notes that it sounds like he's a stalker. Dennim thinks it over for a bit and doesn't deny that he fits the description. He jokes that it only make senses that someone like her would experience every type of crime in existence. He assures her he didn't take the job to watch her sleep, but did want to know who the girl is he's been following all his life. Mind figures that's fair enough and decides not to think ill of a lonely orphan. But then Dennim brings up her abuse and the fact he's surprised to have just learned about it, as he never heard anyone mention this supposed known secret and he never noticed when standing outside of her home. Mind has nothing to say to that statement, except that that makes sense, as it's not meant to leave the house. After a short silence, Dennim asks why she hasn't ran away years ago. Mind says her father won't allow her to leave without guidance and considers it normal to threaten her unprovoked; he has often told her he'd chase her down or kill her, and speaks the same way about those who intend to help her. Mind then tells about the many sympathetic servants who planned to report her father, run away with her and adopt her, or had fallen for her and thought their love was good enough to succeed. She explains that everyone who shows even a little bit of interest in her is frowned upon by her father and lead short lives. Category:Fanon Category:Fanfiction